I've cut my iris back just today, I read somewhere, they should be cut back late fall , early winter, but this is good enough for me, Did the same thing last October. I cut them, leaving about 2 to 3 inches, I also pulled off any brown fans. Just generally cleaned up the entire area. I live 1 1/2 hours south of Cleveland.
Cindy

What happens if you do not cut them back?

I read on Blue J Iris's website (where I got them) that you should not cut back at all, but rather in early spring. This lets the plant get extra energy, as they like cool weather and will store it. I've already pulled off the brown ones that I know were dead. They're just so long and floppy right now. Oh well, I guess I'll wait until they too go brown, or until early spring, say April to finish them up.

Why still would you cut them down in spring if they look healthy? I do not understand what you are accomplishing by cutting them down? Why I ask is I am new to irises. I see people cut them down in the fall all the time. I have some regular traditional irises that I do nothing to and look great every year that I have had for awhile. I purchased last fall 8 reblooming ones. 6 of them bloomed in the spring and only one bloomed this fall so far.

I think most people cut them back just to tidy up the beds. If you do it all at once there is no need to keep going back out and removing the browned ones. I,m leaving mine and removing the dead ones as they brown out. But I have cut them back in the past with no ill effects.

Yea I do the same just remove the browned ones.

Irises are tremendously hardy & will survive almost anything we can do to them.

but they do better if left alone;
those leaves build up the plant's reserve of food/energy for blooming.

I never never ever cut mine back.

Brown leaves are easy to remove.

The green leaves on Iris should never be cut off.
They are feeding the plant as long as they are green.
Mine are still green even in the spring after the snow melts off them.
Just take away the brown leaves as we do the spring weeding.

You're robbing energy on any plant if you cut off green growth. I've grown a large collection of irises for 30 years, and I only trim off dying or brown leaves, like you might groom other plants.

Good, I thought as much, so I have left them alone. I only cut off the very browned, obviously dead leaves. I left everything else on. I will pull off the dead brown ones in spring that are left on over winter.

Thanks all! :)